American Chief Exec

Of the specific powers given to the president in the constitution, which one did lincoln utilize to demonstrate the potential for the president to assume great power during a national emergency?

Licoln used the powers of that of the commander in chief and also the powers he took through the oath of office to preserve, protect, and defend the constitution of the United States

Explain why James McPherson describes Lincoln as a conservative Revolutionary. was he a conservative? was he Revolutionary?

He used Revolutionary powers of the presidency to preserve the system of Government created by the constitution. Because the powers were used and justified only because this was a national emergency, the did not expand the powers of the office in a lasting manner

What percentage of the national popular vote did lincoln get in 1860?

Less than 40% The smallest percentage of the popular vote ever recieved by a winning presidential candidate.

Why does Doris Kearns Goodwyn describe Lincoln's cabinet as a team of Rivals?

Because several members of the cabinet (Seward, Chase, and Bates) had been Lincoln leading opponents for the Republican presidential nomination in 1860

Where did Lincoln locate himself in the debate over whether the united states was created by a union of the states or by a union of the people? Explain why the answer of this was important in 1861, in 1955 and continues to be important today

Following the Phrasing of the first 3 words of the Constitution in the preamble (we the people) Lincoln believed the us was a union of people not states, and the states did not have the right to either nullify laws of the national government (nullification in 1832) or secede from the union in 1862. one interpretation of the idea that the country was a union of states emphasizes what has been loosely defined as states rights. in 1956 in a document the southern manifesto signed by most members of congress from the south, Southern elected officials asserted the right to ignore the Supreme Court decision in Brown vs. BOE chas in which the court declared that state-mandated segregation in public education is constitutional. That "Seperate but equal" is unconstitutional

How did Lincoln justify going to war to defeat the confederacy? Lincoln's justification resembled the action of which president in responding to which events?

Lincoln justified going to war to end secession based on his understanding of the united states as a union of people not states that cound not be severed by the states. He used his oath of office and the power of the commander-in-chief to justify his specific actions in resisting the secession of the confederate states

How did lincoln distinguish between an insurrection and a war? why was this distinction important?

Insurrection = domestic or internal rebellion that the president has the power to resist.

War = military conflict with another country that only congress can declare

Discuss whether Rossiters description of Lincoln's presidency as a constitutional dictatorship is accurate

Constitutional dictatorship refers to the amassing of powers previously unused by american presidents in time of war and that these powers were eventually upheld by the means provided in the Constitution - congress, and the courts. yes, my personal opinion is that it could happen again in time of terrorist attacks or similar threats to our national security.

What was the emancipation proclamation? under what provisions of the constitution did Lincoln justify the issuance of the document?

Emancipation proclamation: Presidential proclamation issued on 1/1/1863 to free the slaves in those states who were in rebellion against the government of the United states. Justified only as a wartime measure. Lincoln did not believe that the president by executive order of Congress by passage of laws could end slavery in peacetime. He believed only a constitutional ammendment could forever bring an end ato slavery in the United States.

Why is the election of 1864 important in understanding and evaluating the Lincoln presidency? How is the answer to this question significant in analyzing what the text describes as the principal task of Lincolns presidency?

Demonstrate that republican government could endure even in the midst of a violent national struggle that threatened its survival

Explain what Theodore Lowi Means when he asserts that by 1875 you would not know there had been a war or a Lincoln

Because lincoln justified his use of the extrordinary presidential powers only as a wartime measure the power and the authority of the presidency reverted to what it had been prior to the civil war. Also because by 1875 Reconstruction was pretty much at an end and the south was starting the process of returning to state -mandated segregation, the effects of the civil war on the freed African Americans from slavery were much reduced.

How did the proposal of the 13, 14, &15th ammendments to the constitution change the course of constitutional development in the United States? Explain the importance of this development and its impact on the evolution of the presidency and the government

The ratification of the 13-15th ammendments initiated the process of expanding the powers of the national government and of extending rights provided under the constitution to groups previously excluded from those rights